


Loving The Whole Boy

by juliesprinkle



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: F/M, Kissing, Reveal, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-03
Updated: 2018-04-24
Packaged: 2019-04-17 22:26:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 17,358
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14198970
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/juliesprinkle/pseuds/juliesprinkle
Summary: When Cat Noir accidently sees Ladybug transform back into Marinette, he is left with knowledge of his beloved that he does not know what to do with.  Figuring out that she likes him as Adrien, how can he make her fall in love with his cat side too?





	1. The Accidental Reveal

**Author's Note:**

  * For [mery_chan27](https://archiveofourown.org/users/mery_chan27/gifts).



> Hi! This is the first piece of fanfiction that I ever wrote (posted first to Tumblr); you might already have read my longer piece, "Love Reveals". This is more lighthearted, and I hope it gives you a good chuckle (and a few swooney feelings)!! I am gifting it to @mery_chan27, because she was very nice to me. :-)
> 
> I have to thank my daughter for patiently putting up with my MLB obsession (it's her fault, anyway, that I watch the show!). It will forever be a fond memory, of sitting in Costco, scribbling on a napkin just how it could happen that Cat Noir came upon Ladybug by mistake, and dreamily mapping out my story for her... and her patting my hand, and crooning to me, "Okay, Mom, okay... come back down to earth..." :-)
> 
> In fact, this piece was inspired by a cartoon I saw on Pinterest - but I don't know how to link to it - where it says, "If Cat Noir found out first" and then has a series of three pictures where Marinette is walking along minding her own business, and Cat Noir is hiding in the background *staring* at her. 
> 
> To read this, you have to pretend that The Gamer episode never happened. I don't intend for this to be any sort of timeline continuation of the show, just a cute story that popped into my head. And I guess, from reading other pieces of fanfiction, that I am supposed to put a disclaimer at the front that I don't own, nor did I make up, any of these characters, etc etc.
> 
> I hope you enjoy my story!!

Loving The Whole Boy

“Pound it!”

Cat Noir grinned at Ladybug, “Particularly amazing tonight, MiLady!” he bowed slightly.

Ladybug grinned back at Cat and returned in kind, “Particularly clever tonight, Chaton.”  Smiling broadly, Cat Noir preened at her words.

*Bleep - Bleep - Bleep* the last spots on Ladybug’s earrings, and the last paw pad on Cat Noir’s ring, flashed, about to disappear.  The two glanced at each other. “Time to bug out!” Ladybug cried, and turning on her heel, she sprinted over the smooth paving stones of the sunny square, veered into a narrow alley tucked between two beaux-artes storefronts, and disappeared.

Cat Noir did not hesitate, and vaulted in the opposite direction.  Like Ladybug, he stayed on the streets, in order to avoid transforming on a steep Parisian rooftop.  He sprang into an avenue, only to see a crowd of people blocking the way. Swerving left, he retracted his baton and pelted into a smaller lane, and kept running to put distance between the crowd and the flash of light he knew would occur at his transformation.  He came to a corner of an alley and swung left again. Cat Noir’s heart was pounding, aware of how close the crowd seemed behind him, aware of how close he was to transforming. His entire attention was taken up with his fear, and when a bright light towards the end of the alley captured his attention, he spent no time worrying about what it was.  And so it was, with no intention of breaking her trust, Cat Noir found himself gazing at his beloved Ladybug, bathed in golden light, retransform into her civilian self. Before he could think to close his eyes, a familiar figure stood framed between the darkened buildings on either side of her. As if to cement the vision, Marinette’s sweet voice said, “C’mon Tikki, let’s go check if Alya’s okay.”

Shocked at his inadvertent discovery, Cat Noir fell back behind the corner he had just come from, and he felt his own transformation occur.

Marinette… his mind stuttered to a stop.  Marinette…!

Spinning out of his ring, Plagg hovered in front of Adrien.  “Ugh, I’m hungry!” he complained, oblivious to Adrien’s blank eyes.  

Adrien stood motionless, ignoring Plagg and trying to comprehend what he had just witnessed.  He believed, then doubted, then believed again, and as his mind was pulled into opposing directions, he suddenly spun around.  Determinedly re-entering the alley, he raced to the end. Peeking around the building’s edge into the large square, with Plagg at his shoulder, Adrien watched Marinette run lightly to Alya, who was waving her cellphone in the air.  He watched Alya chattering excitedly, and shoving the screen of her phone at Marinette. Then, the two of them linked arms and walked off.

With his back against the rough stone of the building, Adrien’s legs wobbled beneath him, and he slid down until he was sitting on the dirty cobblestones.

“Was that Marinette?” Plagg asked, with none of the awe that Adrien felt. 

Adrien nodded his head, then finally managed, “Yeah, Plagg, it was.  It was.” Adrien’s mind was whirring. While Plagg darted around the alleyway, investigating various smells, Adrien sat in the shadow of the building and thought.  Marinette was… Ladybug. Marinette was  his  Ladybug!  Adrien shook his head, still dazed.  One part of him wanted to jump jubilantly, because finally he knew, but at the same time Adrien felt mired in guilt.  He shouldn’t have looked. He should have closed his eyes. But it all happened so fast! But now… a smile crept onto his face, and grew wider and wider until the joy lit his whole expression.  But now, he knew.

Images tumbled through his mind of Ladybug and Marinette.  His Bugaboo swinging effortlessly through the streets of Paris, and Marinette tripping backwards over a bench at school.  Ladybug standing before the people of Paris, proclaiming her promise to fight evil whenever it threatened, and Marinette stammering a greeting while hiding behind Alya.  Yet… Their midnight pigtails, their kind bluebell eyes, their adorable smile. Smacking his forehead, he said to Plagg, “I should have realized!” Plagg ignored him. “I should have realized…” he muttered again.  And yet… they were so different, it was no wonder he’d been oblivious. Ladybug was sassy and quick-witted, easy and outgoing. Marinette was always so shy around him, frequently mumbling incoherent sentences and oftentimes hiding behind her friends.  

But his Ladybug and his… yes, Adrien nodded his chin decisively, his Marinette, both were kind, both stood up to injustice, both had a sharp tongue when the situation required.  Scratching the back of his neck, Adrien thought of the multiple times when Ladybug had rebuffed his advances and said quietly, “And sometimes when not needed too!”

Plagg returned to Adrien and whizzed around his head.  “Why aren’t you getting me cheese?” he whined.

“Plagg, did you see what I just saw?” Adrien asked.

“You mean that rat in the garbage cans over there?  Yeah, that’s but one of the many reasons I want to leave now!”  

Jumping up, Adrien peered back into the alleyway.  If the rat was there, it was keeping still. Adrien turned back to Plagg.  “I just saw Ladybug transform,” he confessed.

For once thinking beyond his stomach, Plagg hovered directly in front of Adrien’s face and demanded,  “Who? Who is she? Do you know her?”

“It’s Marinette…”

His little white fangs gleaming in his grin, Plagg chortled, “Oh ho ho!”  He was silent for only a minute, eagerly watching expressions flit across Adrien’s face.  “So what are you going to do now, Loverboy?”

“I don’t know, Plagg.”  Adrien gazed vaguely at his feet, one hand shielding his eyes from distractions.  Trying to imagine his next steps, Adrien’s mind was a blank.

“I know what you can do…”  Plagg suggested helpfully.

Raising his head with hope, Adrien replied, “Yeah?”

Finally reverting to form, Plagg replied, “Get me some cheese!”

 

Morning dawned not quickly enough.  Sleep had come slowly to Adrien as images of Ladybug and Marinette had melded and morphed in his half-asleep state.  Now he could barely contain himself from gulping down his orange juice and jumping into the limousine, but he knew that Nathalie and his father would question such hastiness.

“Psst!  More cheese.”  Adrien smuggled a piece of camembert into his breast pocket, and glanced over at Nathalie with wide, innocent eyes.  Her nose, however, was almost pressed up against her tablet.

“After school you have fencing, and then Latin.  You will then be picked up for your photo shoot at the Jardin Luxembourg.”  Nathalie’s cool voice rattled off Adrien’s schedule for the day.

“I’m almost finished.  Let’s, um, let’s leave early today because uh, I needed to do some research at the library.”  Adrien laughed a little nervously, uncomfortable with his Chat-like rebellion in his Adrien persona.

But Nathalie noticed nothing, replying instead, “Of course, I will call Marceau.”

Adrien’s stomach fluttered, anticipating his day ahead, and he suddenly wished he had not eaten so much breakfast.

Grabbing four more wedges of stinky cheese, Adrien wrapped them quickly in a linen napkin and stuffed them into his jeans pocket.  Pushing his chair back into place, he thanked the maid coming to retrieve his empty dishes and tried to walk at his normal pace out of the room.  Once in the hall, he hurried to the alcove where he had left his backpack, and then over to the front door. Out of habit, Adrien glanced over his shoulder at the cavernous room.  “Bye, Dad,” he muttered under his breath to the empty space, as he did every morning. With a deep sigh, Adrien pulled open the door to find the car waiting.

Adrien could not help tapping his fingers on the leather armrest as the sedan wended through the Parisian streets.  It felt like the longest ten minutes of his life before they arrived at the front of the school. He almost tumbled out of the car as soon as it stopped, calling a quick “Thanks” to his bodyguard and receiving the customary grunt in return.

Adrien raced up the front steps of the school, and pushed open the doors.  Immediately he felt surrounded by the warmth and welcoming of the building, and he smiled.  Soon, soon, he would see Marinette, and then… A Cat Noir grin of anticipation crossed his face before Adrien stuffed it down, and plastered his normal reserved smile in its place.  Smoothing his hair, Adrien crossed the courtyard to the locker rooms.

“There’s no one here,” Plagg whispered from the edge of Adrien’s shirt.

“I know,” he replied, “I’m early.”

“Well, Loverboy, let me know when she comes.  I’m going back to sleep.” Adrien chuckled quietly and gently patted his shirt pocket.  With Plagg there, he did not feel so alone.

It was not long before students started arriving. They chatted while dropping jackets and books off at lockers, or sloped tiredly along the hallways, or sat on the locker room benches to quickly finish homework due in minutes.

Adrien heard Alya’s voice before he saw her, and of course Marinette was by her side.  He couldn't hear her words, but Alya’s expression was animated and excited, while Marinette smiled into her face.  Adrien stared. He had positioned himself towards the far corner away from the windows, and knew that unless they were searching for him, most people would simply overlook his presence.  Like a hungry cat, Adrien watched Marinette. Her adorable smile suddenly widened into the grin he was familiar with from Ladybug, as she joked back to Alya. When Marinette pulled a book out of her bookbag, another fell onto the floor, and when she then bent over to retrieve it, two more tumbled out as well.

Marinette merely laughed at herself as she scooped up the books.  Adrien tried to school his expression, but he knew the sudden upwelling of affection he felt for his Ladybug must have been apparent to anyone looking.

Naturally graceful, Adrien regardless was aware that as Cat Noir he was even more lithe.  Grinning, and forcing himself not to jump up to help her, Adrien thought that the rule must be doubly true for Marinette.  But, observing her, Adrien wondered at her lack of embarrassment over dropping the books. She didn’t blush, or seem hesitant around Alya…

“Hey Dude!” Nino suddenly appeared before him, blocking his view. “‘Sup?”

“Hey Nino…” Adrien darted him a friendly glance before craning his head to see around him.

“You’re early, dude.  That’s a change.”

Adrien chuckled slightly and kept watching Marinette, replying distractedly, “Yeah, I had things to do…”

Nino stared at Adrien, then turned to follow his gaze.  “Alya and Marinette?” he asked.

Switching his attention to Nino, Adrien asked earnestly, “Nino, have you ever noticed that Marinette stutters all the time when she’s talking to me?  But she doesn’t do that when she’s talking to you or Alya… or Chloe… or…” he pondered. “Why?”

Nino’s bark of laughter interrupted all of the conversations in the room, and like everyone else Marinette and Alya looked their way.  Alya smiled widely and raised her hand to wave, but Marinette just blushed, briefly waved her hand, then buried her nose in her book bag.  Adrien watched her bright blue eyes peek out over the edge of the book bag, meet his gaze, and then Marinette hid her face again.

Still laughing, Nino leaned conspiratorily towards Adrien and said, in a not particularly quiet tone, “Dude, she likes you.”

“What?” Adrien stared at Nino, shocked.

“Adrien, my man, everyone knows it.  Seriously, you don’t know?” Nino was still laughing.

“Are you sure?” Adrien asked, doubting.

“Dude, I’m sure.  Just give her your model smile.  You’ll see what I mean.” Beginning to lope off, Nino suddenly turned and asked, almost protectively, “I mean, you  do like her, don’t you?”

“Yeah, yeah,” Adrien assured him, “Yes, I - I do.”

“Right then,” Nino said, “C’mon.”  Nino left the locker room to go to class, followed immediately by Alya and Marinette.

From Adrien’s breast pocket came a muffled, sarcastic, “Awww…!”

It was only a few minutes later, and seconds before class was to start, that Adrien walked in.  He wanted to make sure that Marinette would already be sitting at her desk. Glancing at Nino, Adrien briefly lifted his chin. Then he said offhandedly, “Morning, Alya.”  Then, as he pivoted to slide into his seat, Adrien turned to Marinette, looked intensely with his emerald green eyes, and let his best model smile grow on his face. The color drained from Marinette’s cheeks and her mouth dropped open a little.  “Morning, Marinette,” Adrien said, a slight hint of huskiness shading his voice. Immediately Marinette’s face turned bright pink. Trying hard not to look, Adrien noticed that the blush seemed to reach even her chest.

“Goo- goo- goo-” Marinette tried to speak, her bluebell eyes like saucers.  Finally she blurted out, “Mrning” and looked quickly down at the paper on her desk.

Sliding into his seat, Adrien heard a muffled laugh beside him. Hidden by their desk, Nino and Adrien slapped palms.

“Good morning, Adrien,” Chloe singsonged from across the room.  Certainly she had not missed his model smile.

“Morning Chloe,” Adrien replied, barely sparing her a glance.  From behind him, Adrien heard Alya’s satisfied voice murmur, “Mhmm!”

It was almost impossible for Adrien to concentrate that day, knowing that his Ladybug was right behind him.  He couldn’t believe the newfound power he had over his Love, who reacted to him so differently than she did to Cat Noir.  At moments, he actually doubted if he was correct, if Marinette was his Ladybug. But then he would look into her expressive eyes, or catch her shielding one of their classmates from Chloe’s verbal barbs, and his doubts were erased.

Adrien couldn’t help but feel like he was indulging in a game of cat and mouse.  In science class, he asked to borrow her calculator, and intentionally brushed her fingers as he took it.  Marinette gasped, blushed and jerked her hand back, knocking her notebook off the desk. When he bent to retrieve it for her, she bent as well, and as their eyes met, and he handed her the notebook, he winked at her privately.  Marinette started, and banged her head on the bottom of her desk, crying out, “Ow!”

Sitting again, Marinette rubbed the top of her head where it ached.  Worried, Adrien turned to her and mouthed, “Sorry!” only to have her, once again, turn bright red.

Beside him, Nino dissolved into laughter.

But, his Bugaboo was hurt, and it was his fault, so Adrien poked Nino in the side.  It wasn’t funny.

At another point during the morning, while they were in the locker room, Adrien approached Marinette from behind.  “Hey Marinette,” he said casually. She jumped, and turned, pressing back against the lockers. Adrien took a small step closer, effectively trapping her between the wall, her locker, and him.  “I was just wondering,” he stared into her blue eyes, and an image of Ladybug was superimposed over the nervous face of Marinette. Adrien grinned his cocky, Cat Noir smile, and continued, “can you tell me what our science homework is again?  I wasn’t listening when she told us.”

“Um, uh, hience somework… I mean, science somework… I mean, science homework!  I mean,” trying desperately to match Adrien’s casualness, Marinette ran a shaky hand over her hair, “Sure, sure!”  She grinned widely, nervously, at him. Adrien watched her, with Cat Noir attention. She stared back.

“So…?” he prompted.

“So…?” she repeated.  Then, realizing, she jumped, giggled a little, and said, “Right, science homework.  Ummm…” Fishing her planner out of her bag, she flipped it open to the right page and held it out for him.  No way was she going to try to speak what the assignment was.

Adrien glanced at her bubbly writing, and started to copy down the words.  Hearing a stifled gasp, Adrien saw Marinette quickly move her thumb to cover some doodle in the corner of the page she was showing him.  Her thumb wasn’t quite large enough to completely obscure the heart that she had drawn.

Grinning inside, Adrien simply said, “Thanks,” and turned to go.  As he walked away, he swore he heard Marinette sigh. Alya raced past him to her friend, shooting a friendly but curious look his way as they passed.  Adrien just opened his green eyes as innocently as possible.

It wasn’t until lunchtime that Adrien could ask Nino for more advice.  He led him to a table at the edge of the room, and sat with his back to the wall.  Nino sat next to him, stuffing his face with chips, baguette, and cheese. Adrien could feel impatient squirming from his breast pocket, and whenever Nino wasn’t looking, he palmed wedges of the camembert he had brought and passed them to Plagg.

“So the thing is, Nino,” Adrien began, staring at Marinette across the cafeteria, “How do I get her to talk to me if I make her so nervous?”

“Dude, you just gotta spend more time with her.  You know, ‘familiarity breeds contempt,’ and all that.”

“I hardly want her contempt, Nino,” Adrien remarked.

“The familiarity part, dude, the familiarity part.  Just spend more time around her.”

Suddenly, a horrible thought crossed Adrien’s mind, “You don’t think she only likes me because of the whole model-thing, do you?”  

“Nah,” Nino patted Adrien reassuringly on his shoulder, “She hated you at first, remember?”

A muffled cough sounded quietly from his breast pocket.  Waiting until Nino was chewing his food, Adrien sneaked Plagg more cheese.

“Now Chloe,” Nino gestured with his apple, “She’s a different story.”  The two glanced over at Chloe and Sabrina, and were treated to a fluttery wave of Chloe’s fingertips.

“Aw, Chloe’s just Chloe.  She’s had some hard times too,” Adrien remarked.

“Whatever, Dude.  That doesn’t mean she has to be  so evil.”

Adrien shrugged in response, then went back to the pleasurable pastime of staring at Marinette until lunch ended.  He was calculating his next move.

 

When the bell rang sounding the end of the school day the students jumped up as one.  It was a sunny Spring afternoon, and no one wanted to remain in the building one second longer, particularly not Adrien.

He and Nino shrugged their casual goodbye’s to each other as Adrien raced down to the courtyard.  Panting slightly Adrien skidded to a stop before his fencing teacher and said, “M. D’Argencoeur, I got double-booked for a photoshoot this afternoon, so I can’t attend fencing today.  Father says I am to tell you that we’ll make up a double class later.” The lie tumbled too easily from Adrien.

With a formal bow, M. D’Argencoeur tilted his head and replied, “As thou wishest.”

Released from fencing, Adrien next went in search of his Latin tutor.  “Mme Elianne, I got double-booked for a photoshoot this afternoon,” he said, recycling his lie, “so I have to miss Latin class today.  But father says you are to email me double homework, and I will complete it tonight.” He hoped the extra work would throw the Latin teacher off the scent of his deceit.  Plus, this was exactly like something his father would arrange for him in this situation.

With a smile, Mme Elianne nodded and said, “Of course.”

Adrien could not leave the school quickly enough.  “Are you sure this is a good idea?” Plagg asked, flitting out of Adrien’s pocket.  “What if your father finds out?”

“He won’t,” Adrien assured him, “and if he does, I’ll just say I went to the movies.  Now hide!” Adrien held open his shirt, as he pushed through the front door of the school.

Now, Adrien had two whole hours free of any supervision, and he intended to put them to good use.  Grinning with anticipation, he jogged the short distance from school to Marinette’s family’s bakery.

Pushing open the corner door, Adrien stepped in and was immediately surrounded by the warm, yeasty smell of croissants, breads, and cookies.  Plagg stirred in his pocket.

Mrs. Cheng stepped forward and said, “May I help you?”  Tom Dupain was in the kitchen just beyond, his muscular arms bulging as he slid a large tray of fresh croissants out of the oven.  Adrien’s mouth watered at the sight of the flakey, golden rolls, as their aroma infused the store.

“Wow!” he said, green eyes glowing, “Those look delicious!”

Sabine Cheng laughed lightly and said, “Thank you.  Would you like one?”

“Yes, thanks!” Adrien replied, but then catching himself, he remembered what he was there for and corrected himself, “I’m sorry, no.  I mean, uh,” rubbing the back of his neck, Adrien said, “I’m a friend of Marinette’s. I just dropped by to say hi. May I…?”

Tom came forward and put his arm around his petite wife.  With a smile on his face, he nevertheless looked Adrien up and down, taking the measure of his character.

“Of course,” Mrs. Cheng replied.  She moved to the back of the store, opened a door, and called into the living portion of their establishment, “Marinette!  You have a friend here!”

Marinette’s muffled voice called down a set of stairs just in view, “Alya?”

“No, honey,” her dad’s voice boomed from where he stood, “It’s-”  He stopped and looked at Adrien, waiting.

“Adrien.  It’s Adrien Agreste, sir.”

“It’s Adrien!” Tom bellowed.

A loud crash sounded from the ceiling above.  The three of them cringed and looked up.

Marinette’s voice sounded again, and even through the ceiling plaster Marinette’s mom and dad, and Adrien, could hear the panic in her voice, “Okay, okay, um, hold on a minute!”

Giving their daughter time, the three in the store listened to Marinette’s scurrying feet as Sabine made small talk.  “I’m so glad to finally meet you! Marinette talks an awful lot about you.” She smiled.

“Uh, she does?” Adrien couldn’t keep the interest and hopefulness out of his voice.

“You’re new this year, aren’t you son?” Tom asked.

“Yes sir.  My father only gave me permission this year to attend school.”

“And Marinette says you keep a very busy schedule…?” Sabine added.

“Yes, ma’am,” Adrien replied.  For the first time in the eventful day, he felt himself blush for a change.  Marinette really did talk to her parents about him. It felt odd, having these grown ups show an interest in him.

“Well,” Tom said in his friendly, bellowing voice, “If you ever need a pick-me-up between your busy appointments, you swing by here and we’ll get you fed.”  He moved off to continue his work, and only Adrien heard Plagg’s quiet sigh, “I love this family!”

“Okay!” Suddenly, Marinette appeared at the rear door of the store, “Come on up!”  She laughed nervously. Tom and Sabine watched Adrien climb the stairs and disappear into the apartment above.

“Uh, hi,” Marinette said once they reached her bedroom, but her eyes darted around the room as if re-checking it.

“Hey,” Adrien said, standing awkwardly in the middle of the space.  Now that he was here, he had no clue what he should do next.

“Um, why… why are you here?  I mean,” Marinette smiled widely, nervously, “Not that I don’t want you here!  I’m glad you’re here. But only if you want to be here, of course, ‘cause I know you’re so busy, but, um…” her voice petered out, “Um,  why are you here?”

“Well,” Adrien channeled his Cat Noir, and tried to relax into the situation, “...Um, may I sit?”

“Oh, sure, of course, sorry!” Marinette almost tripped over herself fetching one of her desk chairs for him.

As he lounged into it, Marinette stared at him, and sighed.  She perched on the edge of her desk. “Well, I had a little bit of free time this afternoon and I… uh… I wanted to check on you after you banged your head.”  There, that was good, he thought.

“But you have fencing today after school,” Marinette stated.  Adrien looked at her sharply, surprised, and Marinette colored, “I mean, don’t you?”  She tried to change it into a question.

“Well, I did…” Adrien brushed his hand over his hair, avoiding her eyes, “But I had something more important to do instead.”

With her complete lack of self-importance, Marinette said, “You did?  What?”

Laughing inside, floored for the thousandth time that Marinette was  his Ladybug, Adrien looked at her significantly and raised his eyebrows.  A smile tugged at his lips.

Marinette’s eyebrows furrowed, just like his Bugaboo’s did when she was thinking, and Adrien watched the comprehension of his statement finally dawn on Marinette’s face.  She turned bright pink, red even, and looked towards the floor, and said, “Oh!” while unconsciously rubbing the spot where she had hit her head earlier.

“Um, I’m, uh, I’m fine…” she said, darting a glance at him from the corner of her eyes.

Adrien’s smile faded a little.  As amusing as their interactions might be to some, he really wished that Marinette would just be more like Ladybug so he could relax in her presence and be himself.  He tried again, “I figured the least I could do was help you with your homework in case your head still hurt.”

A bit of Ladybug crossed her face, as Marinette pursed her lips and stated, “I don’t need ‘help’ with my homework.”  Adrien smiled, relieved.

“Okay, actually-” Adrien started, just as the trapdoor opened and Mr. and Mrs. Dupain-Cheng popped their heads through.

Tom held out a plate of warm croissants and said, “I thought you kids might like a little snack after your long school day.”

“They’re freshly baked,” wheedled Sabine.

“Mom… Dad…” Marinette said, just as Adrien sat up straight and replied, “Wow, thanks Mr. Dupain!”

Marinette’s parents looked at each other and burst out laughing.  Tom climbed into the room and placed the croissants next to his daughter on her desk.  Flicking her nose teasingly, he said, “Just in case you change your mind. But you should feed that boy.” With a smile for Adrien, he turned and left, closing the trapdoor behind his wife and him.

“Um, croissant?” Marinette offered.

“Thanks!” Adrien rose quickly to accept the croissant and napkin that Marinette held out to him.  He closed his eyes, savoring the buttery, flakey delight. Watching him, Marinette sighed. The afternoon sunshine caught his hair in a golden halo, and his long eyelashes rested gently on his flawless cheeks.  She sighed again.

Adrien opened his eyes, and licked his fingertips.  “Your dad is a really good baker!” he exclaimed.

“Thanks,” Marinette accepted the compliment for her Dad.  Still licking his fingers, Adrien was staring at her, and Marinette grew nervous again.

“So, uh, what do you want to do?  I mean, uh,” she was blathering again, “not homework!”

Quick memories played in his mind of all the times Ladybug had had him hanging upside down and their noses had been almost touching.  Schooling himself not to look at her lips, Adrien quickly suggested, ” Do you have any computer games?”

“Yes!” Marinette jumped up, almost relieved, but it brought her much closer to Adrien than she had expected.  Unsteady with her temerity, she leaned back, but Adrien quickly grabbed her shoulders, “Careful, MiL-” Adrien rapidly corrected himself, “Marinette.”

“Uh…” Marinette giggled a little, and moved away to fetch a second chair from across the room.  She positioned the two chairs in front of her desk while Adrien grabbed the two gaming consoles he saw sitting next to the computer.

“You know,” he tried to sound as non-threatening as he could, “I kinda wish you weren’t so nervous around me.  I don’t bite,” he added.

“Nuh- Nervous?  I’m not ner-” Marinette stopped herself, again coloring.  With a small, self-conscious laugh, she looked down at the desk and said, “okay…”

However, Adrien had spoken too soon, because within five minutes of starting the game, all of Marinette’s skittishness disappeared.  Once the competition of the computer game took over, it was no longer the shy Marinette sitting by his side, but the sassy Ladybug who beat him multiple (“But not every!”) times, and exulted in her victories.  Playing the game, she laughed at his jokes, swore at her mistakes, and teased him when she could. Marinette’s parents popped their heads in from time to time, curious, only to find the two friends laughing and battling cheerfully.

Finally, Adrien’s watch vibrated on his wrist, reminding him that he had to get back to the school for his photoshoot.  With not a little regret, Adrien tossed down his console and said, “I surrender. You win this one too.”

Marinette spun in her chair, still high from the competition and enjoying their camaraderie.  She teased, “Surrender if you must, but you had a chance of winning that one! I just got lucky that you have to go!”

Adrien handed her a croissant and grabbed one for himself.  Around a bite of croissant, he laughed, “ I don’t feel lucky that I have to go!”

Marinette grinned at him, as she pulled pieces of her croissant off and nibbled them.  Turning his chair around so that he could straddle it, Adrien leaned forward against the back and stared at Marinette.

“I had a great time.  Thanks for having me over.”  His emerald eyes played over her face.

Marinette’s cocky grin softened into a smile, “I’m glad you came too.”

Their gazes caught, bright blue and bright green, both gleaming.  Leaning forward slightly, Adrien raised his right hand and placed it gently against her cheek.  With his thumb, Adrien wiped a small crumb of croissant off her lips. Marinette breathed in, and sat wide eyed, still as a frightened deer.  He wanted so badly to kiss her, he could almost taste her lips, but Adrien held himself back. When he kissed her - When! he thought - he would be kissing the whole girl.  Not just Marinette, who after today he luxuriated in believing that she really liked him, but Ladybug too. His entire Bugaboo, shy and strong, clumsy and sassy, unsure and willing to fight for right.

With a low voice, Adrien said, “See you at school tomorrow, Mari.”  He got up, grabbed his book bag, and walked to the trapdoor. Marinette still sat at the desk, but she had turned her whole body to watch him leave.  Her lips were still slightly parted. 

With a final grin, he pulled open the trapdoor, leaped down the stairs, and raced to his photoshoot.


	2. Like Us, MiLady, Like Us

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please remember when reading this, that I wrote it before Season 2 came out, even in Europe. Since then, Nadja Chamak showed the valentine's kiss to Cat Noir, but like The Gamer, I guess you just have to forget that! :-) Also, please forgive the use of the pun, "cat got your tongue." I know it is overused in this fandom, but it fits precisely here and I really most likely would have used it even without other people putting it into my mind! I promise!
> 
> I hope you enjoy!

Marinette was bent over her desk struggling for the thousandth time to pull her mind back to the Math homework in front of her, when Tikki suddenly whizzed before her face and cried, “Marinette!  I think Cat Noir is trying to reach you! You have to transform!”

“What?” Marinette lifted her head, surprised.

“I - I can feel it!  I think he’s using his baton to try to contact you.”

Without hesitation, Marinette jumped up and cried, “Tikki, spots on!”  A bright light enveloped her, and the familiar weightless, spinning feeling washed over her.  Within a breath, the floor re-solidified beneath her feet, and she felt her body encased in her soft, supple red suit.  Immediately her magic yoyo chimed, and Marinette flipped it open.

“What’s wrong?” Ladybug cried without preliminary.

Cat Noir’s wide grin greeted her words, “Bugaboo!  Nothing’s wrong, but I had an idea, and I didn’t know how else to contact you.”

“No akumas?” Ladybug confirmed.  At Cat Noir’s nod, she relaxed, and smiled back.  “What’s up, Kitty?”

Cat Noir could feel his heartbeat speeding up.  After spending the day making Marinette nervous, Adrien just wanted to spend a little time relaxing with his Ladybug.  He knew he’d be able to joke and flirt with her, without Ladybug stumbling, stuttering, and making them both anxious. He just wanted to hang out with his friend, but never before had they spent time without primarily chasing an akuma’s victim.  Now he was hoping to change all that. “So I was thinking we ought to start patrolling periodically, to try to catch Hawkmoth’s victims before they do too much damage. And also,” he added, thinking that might not be enough to pull Marinette from her homework, “if we can find an akuma before it gets to its victim, maybe we can trace back where they come from and find Hawkmoth’s lair.”  He grinned a little nervously, and rubbed his neck. “Whaddya think, MiLady?”

Ladybug bit her lip and thought to herself, _I wish I had thought of it_.  Nodding to the screen however, Ladybug replied, “Pretty clever, Kitty!  Finally we could find Hawkmoth! You want to meet right now? Where?”

“Let’s meet at the top of the Eiffel Tower, where Guitar Villain fought XY.”

“Okay!” Ladybug agreed.  “Bug out!” She clicked shut her yoyo, then surveyed her room.  She still had half of her Math homework to finish, and she was supposed to start an essay for History.  “It’s not like I was getting anything done anyway,” she muttered. So, leaping up to her sleeping loft, Marinette placed a pillow under the covers to fool her parents in case they checked, and then flipped off the lights.  Letting herself out onto the roof garden, Ladybug felt the familiar thrill as she threw her yoyo to the opposite roofline, and leaped off into the night.

Ladybug and Cat Noir arrived at the Eiffel Tower almost simultaneously.  

“Good evening, MiLady,” Cat Noir swept Ladybug a grand bow.

“I’m glad you thought of this, Cat Noir!” Ladybug replied, all business.  She took a moment to survey Paris, and at her side, Cat Noir took a moment to survey her.  The soft lights of Paris highlighted the slope of her shoulder and the curve of her hips, emphasizing her delicate waist.  For a moment, Cat Noir dreamt of placing one hand possessively around her waist and pulling her next to him as they looked out over the cityscape.

Instead, Cat Noir stepped up to the railing next to her.  He wrapped his gloved hands over the railing as the night’s wind shuddered the iron structure.  “I thought we could divide the city into quadrants and take one quadrant a night.”

“You really have put thought into this, haven’t you Chaton?” Ladybug asked, impressed.  She added, “I don’t think I can come out every night though. I … I have…” Ladybug weighed how much to give away about herself, “I have homework, and parents.”

Cat Noir smiled into the night, thinking fondly, and more than a little enviously, of Mr. and Mrs. Dupain-Cheng.  “I have homework too. Maybe we could do this every other night. Let’s just play it by-” he flicked his cat ears back and forth, “-ear.”

Ladybug smiled at his antics, then tossing her yoyo into the pitchy darkness below, she said, “Let’s do the northwest quadrant tonight,” and swung down the tower.  Cat Noir was quick on her heels, jumping and vaulting from one strut to the next, until they reached the ground.

The two leaped across the rooflines of Paris, generally Ladybug taking the lead but sometimes Cat Noir calling directions.  They criss-crossed avenues and alleyways, swinging past the Arc de Triomphe, hopscotching lamp posts on the Champs Elysee, and heading ultimately for the Sacre Coeur.  Ladybug lost herself in the glorious freedom of flying between the buildings. The wind whistled in her ears, and pulled at her pigtails. She felt like finally she was leaving the clumsiness and confusion of the day behind her as she sped through the night.

In fact, Cat Noir was struggling a bit to keep up with her.  He doubted she was actually watching out for akumas, but rather seemed to be racing herself through the night.

“Hold up, Lightning Bug!” Cat Noir called as they approached the Tuileries.  Ladybug landed lightly on the gravel near a large round fountain, and Cat Noir came to rest beside her.  Both were panting.

“I’m not sure we’re going to see any akumas when we race through the streets that way, MiLady.”

Ladybug looked down at her feet, and hesitated before agreeing.  Then she kicked a pebble across the wide path and said, “Sorry, Cat.  I guess I wasn’t really looking. It just felt so good to go fast.” She kicked at another pebble.

Cat Noir put one hand on her shoulder and asked, “Are you okay, Bugaboo?  Bad day?”

Ladybug laughed a little, and shrugging his hand off her shoulder, replied, “No, just the opposite actually.  C’mon, I’ll be slower,” and shooting her yoyo ahead of her, she took off again.

Cat Noir sighed a little, thinking he should be happy, but in fact feeling a little bereft.  Extending his baton, he took off after her.

Ladybug was more assiduous this time, carefully choosing the route with the most efficient perspective, and more precisely transversing the area.  Cat Noir also stayed professional, pushing his desire to tease and flirt to the back of his mind for the moment.

Finally they came to rest at the Sacre Coeur.  Ladybug chose a smaller dome for them to perch upon, with the view of the city spread out at their feet.  It was small enough that, as they sat, their shoulders rubbed each other’s. They were panting a little again.

The two sat in companionable silence, feeling the cool breeze and listening to the muted sounds of Paris at their feet.  The muffled sounds of cars gunning their motors at green lights, and honking at slower motorists, the disjointed singing from a bar somewhere in Montmartre, a girl laughing, solo footsteps… The distant sounds added life to the twinkling city lights.

Ladybug sighed just as Cat Noir said, “I love this city.”

Giggling at their parallel thoughts, Ladybug said, “I do too.”

“So, MiLady,” Cat Noir turned to Ladybug and leaned back on his arms, “You had a good day?  I know a way we could make it even better…” and he playfully waggled his eyebrows beneath his mask.

Pushing lightly on his shoulder with her index finger, Ladybug laughed and said, “Oh, Cat.  You cannot make my day any better than it was!”

“Care to make that a bet?” Cat Noir asked flirtatiously.

“No!” Ladybug answered a little quickly, a blush staining her cheeks.  _Hmmm…_ Cat Noir thought to himself, encouraged, but Ladybug’s next words deflated him.  “I mean, there’s a boy at school that I’ve liked for a long time, and today he… Well, he just paid a lot of attention to me.  There’s nothing you could do that could top that.”

“MiLady, you wound me!” Cat Noir dramatically placed one hand over his heart.  Then, narrowing his eyes at her, he said, “You’re not going to tell me about my rival, are  you? This is a cat-astrophe!” and grinned.

Shaking her head at his silly pun, Ladybug replied, “Your rival?  Pfft!”

Cat Noir leaned down and butted her shoulder with his head, cat-style, and teased, “So I’m still the first in your heart, Bugaboo?”

“Seriously, Cat Noir, I really do like this boy.  I’m… I’m sorry…”

Cat Noir kept his head down so that Ladybug couldn’t see his smile.  Schooling his expression, he then looked up at Ladybug and asked, “Is he strong?”

“What?” Ladybug asked, surprised.

“Is he strong?  Is he as strong as me?” and he flexed his biceps to emphasize his question.

Laughing again, Ladybug said, “Of course not!  You’re a superhero!”

“So he’s not as strong as you, either,” Cat Noir pointed out.  A peculiar look crossed Ladybug’s face. “Does he fight bad guys?”

Pressing her lips together, a tiny bit cross, Ladybug said, “Like you, you mean?”

“Like us, MiLady, like us.”  Cat Noir moved his hand on top of hers.  Ladybug pulled her hand away, and crossed her arms.

“No,” she replied, a little grumpily, “he doesn’t fight bad guys.”  She tried not to rise to Cat Noir’s bait, but finally said defensively, “Look, he’s just a nice, smart, kind guy.”

“Is he cute?” Cat Noir asked, and shaking his golden, silky hair, knowing that even the dim lights of the night cityscape would catch his natural highlights, Cat Noir gazed at Ladybug with the most appealing expression in his emerald green eyes.  He added, “Is he as cute as me?”

Relaxing again, Ladybug uncrossed her arms and waved her hand dismissively, “Oh please!  Much cuter! He’s a model!”

Cat Noir shook his head and tsk’ed.  “So let me get this straight.” Raising one hand, he ticked off his points on his fingers, “You like a boy who is kinda weak, merely nice, but certainly gorgeous.  Huh. I didn’t realize you were so won over by surface appeal, MiLady. I would have spent more time on my appearance,” he teased.

Ladybug was back to sputtering defensively, “Cat, that’s not what I meant!  He’s… he’s… also really smart, and thoughtful, and he has a crummy dad, and…” she petered out, uncertain how to explain Adrien to Cat Noir.  He was earnest and kind, not showy but genuine. He did not flirt incessantly. He was… breathtaking.

Cat Noir interrupted her thoughts with more flirting.  In a persuasive tone he suggested, “You could date us both and then make a more informed decision.  I’m not afraid of the competition!”

“Cat Noir!”

Leaning forward, almost conspiratorily, Cat Noir added, “I even bet that I’m the better kisser!”

Immediately the image of Cat Noir looming over her, threatening her with his Cataclysm, popped into Ladybug’s mind, along with her memories of pulling his face to hers and kissing him deeply.  To this day, he did not even know.

Cat Noir watched Ladybug go absolutely still, and then her face turn a bright, bright pink.  At her silence, he grinned, “Cat got your tongue?”

As if burned, Ladybug jumped to her feet and shot out her yoyo to the main dome of the cathedral, “Okay, I’m done.  Goodnight, Cat Noir!”

Cat Noir bent over, laughing hilariously.  He wasn’t quite sure why his last outrageous comment had been the final straw for Ladybug, but clearly it was.  Gasping for breath, Cat Noir jumped up to chase after her, still chuckling.

“Wait, wait Ladybug!” he called.

Ladybug did pause, standing silhouetted at the peak of Sacre Coeur’s dome.  Cat Noir leaped up to her, but Ladybug kept her body stiff and her back turned to him.  “I’m sorry, Bugaboo!” he said sincerely, although humor still shaded his tone. “I didn’t meant to tease!”  He got down on one knee and grabbed her hand in his. Ladybug finally softened enough to look at him. He gallantly kissed the back of her hand and promised, “I won’t tease you again.”  Then, he thought better of it and said, “Well, at least I promise to try not to tease you again!”  Ladybug pulled her hand out of his grasp.

Rising, Cat Noir asked contritely, “Friends?” and held out his hand.

Pursing her lips, Ladybug glowered at Cat Noir for a moment but then relented.  She grasped his hand with hers and echoed, “Friends.” They shook.

Cat Noir let go of her hand and pulled out his baton.  “I guess it’s time to call it a night. Meet to patrol the evening after tomorrow, right?  Same time, same place?”

“Uh, right,” Ladybug replied, somewhat bemused by Cat Noir’s sudden, professional tone.

“Okay, see you then!” he said.  Extending his baton, Cat Noir turned to vault off the building, only to look over his shoulder at Ladybug, “But I do think you should date us both.  Goodnight!” and he leaped off into the night.

Ladybug was caught off guard with his last comment, and couldn’t gather her wits quickly enough to get the last word in.  She was left sputtering, alone, with the image of dating both Adrien and Cat Noir stuck in her mind.

Grumpily she made her way home.


	3. The First Kiss

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adrien spends the school day with Marinette, and watches the seeds of doubt that he laid as Cat Noir begin to sprout in Marinette's mind... but then he panics!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahhh... I like this scene! Hee hee! Enjoy!
> 
> p.s. the part about the tin buttons on the uniforms of Napoleon's army is an actual historical theory. Isn't that interesting? I have seen it referenced in a couple of places, but I read an interesting book that covered it in good detail, called, "Napoleon's Buttons: 17 molecules that changed history" by Penny Couteur. It is a history/chemistry book, and really fascinating!

 

Adrien woke up with a song in his heart.  Last night had gone even better than he had hoped, and today he would get to spend all day close to the person he loved and admired.  Before leaving the sanctuary of his bedroom, Adrien flicked through favorite photos of his mom saved on his phone and murmured, “You’d really like her, Mom.”

In the corner, Adrien heard Plagg waking up with a loud stretch.  He usually waited until just before Adrien headed down to breakfast to rouse himself.  “Breakfast time?” Plagg confirmed as he flitted over to Adrien. Seeing what Adrien was doing, Plagg placed one paw delicately on Adrien’s shoulder while he too looked at the phone screen.

With a quick swipe and click, Adrien closed his photos app and turned off his phone.  Pocketing it, he turned and said unemotionally, “Let’s get you some cheese.” Plagg silently zoomed next to Adrien, unwilling to voice the sadness he knew Adrien was covering up.

Changing the mood, Plagg intentionally mocked Adrien, “Are you going to speed through breakfast again, so you can stare at Marinette?”

“Sure thing, Plagg.  Other than fighting akumas, it’s the best part of my day.  Now c’mon and hide.” Adrien held open his white shirt for Plagg to fly into.

A hot breakfast was waiting on the table for him, and as Adrien helped himself to juice, Nathalie walked in.  “Good morning,” Nathalie said, cool as a cucumber. Adrien returned her greeting as she pulled up his schedule for the day.  “You have a fitting during lunch for your shoot tomorrow. Immediately after school you will return home for Chinese.”

Adrien interrupted her, “Nathalie, we were given group projects in History yesterday, “ he lied.  “My group wants to meet directly after school in the library. It’s not like I can meet at lunch, so please can you push the Chinese off for an hour?”

Nathalie flicked her eyes off of the tablet to evaluate Adrien. He tried to look sincere and appealing.  Returning to the tablet, Nathalie swiped her fingers rapidly across its screen and then announced, “Fine.  You’ll have one hour.”

Adrien exhaled the breath he hadn’t realized he was holding.

“After Chinese, your father has arranged an art history tour at the Louvre.  You will then have dinner out. Then, obviously, homework.” Nathalie cleared her screen, and reached for an empty glass.  A servant in a black and white uniform efficiently filled it with juice. While Nathalie was distracted, Adrien smuggled two thick slices of camembert to Plagg.

As he tried calmly to eat his breakfast, he coyly dropped slices of cheese into the linen napkin spread on his lap. Gathering its corners together, Adrien pushed his empty plate to the side, rose, and declared, “I would like to leave for school now.”

Nathalie immediately tapped her tablet’s screen, and said, “Marceau will be waiting for you.”

Adrien’s footsteps echoed loudly on the marble floor of the entry hall.  He grabbed his backpack, tossed the stinky napkin full of cheese into its outer pocket, and then walked directly towards the imposing front doors.  Placing one hand on the doorknob, Adrien offered to the empty space, “Bye, Dad.” Then he pulled open the door and walked out into the morning sun.

His bodyguard was waiting for him in the car.  As soon as Adrien slammed the car door behind him, the bodyguard took off.

Again Adrien found himself tapping the leather armrest of the plush sedan.  To give himself something else to do, Adrien pulled the linen napkin back out of his backpack and offered a slice of cheese to his breast pocket.  Plagg needed no persuasion, and grabbed the cheese from his hand. Muffled sounds of satisfied chewing brought a grin to Adrien’s face, followed by a whispered demand, “More!”  For the entire drive, Adrien passed sticky, stinky slices of cheese to Plagg, and wondered that Plagg didn’t get sick of them.

Arriving at the school, Adrien finally let himself smile in anticipation.  “Thanks,” he said, hopping out, and Marceau grunted. Adrien raced up the stairs of the school, dashed through the courtyard, and made a beeline for the corner in the locker room where he had positioned himself the day before.  

It was not long before Marinette entered, alone.  She glanced quickly around the locker room, overlooking Adrien, then started removing books from her bag.  Adrien watched her, remembering how she had teased him about losing the computer games, and remembering how red she had gone when he had mentioned kissing the night before.  He gazed at her face, teased his imagination with her lips, and wished he knew just what to say to get his entire Ladybug to love him.

Alya and Nino entered together, in close conversation.  Nino was talking with his hands. Alya immediately saw Marinette, and then closely scanned the rest of the room until her eyes came to rest on Adrien.  Raising her arm high to wave, she called out loudly, “Hi Adrien!” Marinette jumped, and looked around again panicked. She too saw Adrien, and saw that he was watching her, and then turned and tried to escape into her locker.  

Adrien grabbed his book bag and stood up.  “Hey!” Plagg complained about the jolting movement from his shirt pocket.

With his model smile, Adrien walked directly over to Marinette.  “Good morning, Marinette.”

Marinette peeked over her shoulder, “M- Morning Adrien!”  Her eyes shone.

“Did you get all of your homework done last night?” he asked.

Marinette had stayed up quite late struggling to finish the second half of her Math.  Thoughts of Cat Noir and Adrien had chased each other around in her brain all night long.  “Um, no,” she answered honestly. “I didn’t even start History. Um, how ‘bout you?”

_ She’s still nervous, _ Adrien thought, then answered aloud, “Mostly.  I had double Latin, so that took awhile.”  _ But it was worth it, _ he added to himself.  Alya wandered casually up and stood just inside the peripheral vision of both of them.  “Do you want to meet in the library after class, and work on History together?”

“Really?” Marinette asked, “Are you sure?”

“Sweetie, of course he’s sure,” Alya broke in, patting Marinette’s shoulder.  While Marinette stared at Adrien, Alya turned to him and replied, “Of course she does.  She was already asking me if I would work on History with her but I have my Ladyblog to work on.”

“I did?” Marinette turned a surprised look to Alya, who raised her eyebrows meaningfully at Marinette.  “Oh! I did!” Marinette said to Adrien, then added a little shyly, “Of course I’d like to.” 

Not a single second of this interaction was missed by Chloe, who took the opportunity to sail up and drape her arm around Adrien, effectively turning him away from Marinette and Alya.  “Adrien! How fun!” she exclaimed loudly, “Daddy says you and I have a  private tour of the Louvre this evening!  Just you and me!” She looked significantly over her shoulder at Marinette.

“Uh, right,” Adrien replied, nervously, “I didn’t know you would be there…”

“Daddikins arranged it, and I  knew you would want  me there, so of course I’m coming!  I wouldn’t miss it for the world…” she purred.  Then, she tugged on Adrien to lead him away.

Adrien did not wish to cause a scene, so he went, but first he looked over his shoulder and mouthed, “The library!” and smiled.  But his smile faded at the frown on Marinette’s face, and the glower darkening Alya’s. When they finally got to class, and Nino slipped in beside him, Nino simply looked Adrien up and down, shaking his head, “You’ve got a lot to learn about women, my man!”  Glumly, Adrien sighed.

Despite Chloe’s interference, Adrien felt that the morning went well.  Midterms were coming up, so their classes were intense enough that there was very little chatting while the teachers were lecturing, but between bells Adrien tried hard to smooth over the rough patch that Chloe had sowed.  At first, Alya watched him hawkishly, dubiously, but after a while she relaxed enough to suggest that Nino and Adrien join Marinette and her for lunch.

“I’m sorry, I can’t,” Adrien said, “I have a fitting for a photo shoot at lunchtime.”

“Heh heh!” Nino laughed, “The life of a model, dude!”

Adrien saw his opportunity and took it, “I’m not just a pretty face, Nino.  I bet I could beat you at an armwrestle!”

“You’re on!” Nino exclaimed, pushing up his sleeve and resting his elbow on the desk.  Adrien glanced to his left to make sure that Marinette and Alya were watching. He noticed with satisfaction that Marinette’s eyes were narrowed attentively.

Within a second of starting, Adrien knew that Nino did not stand a chance against him.  Still, he drew out the match, so that when he finally won it looked like he had had to work at it.  As the rows around them applauded, Adrien grinned up at Marinette and suggested, “Care to try?”

He could see Ladybug’s mind clicking away behind Marinette’s eyes, and was not surprised when she said, “Yes, okay.”

Rising, Adrien slipped onto the bench next to her and held out his arm.

Marinette placed her hand in his, and Adrien folded his fingers over hers.  Her hand almost disappeared. They both extended their other hands to hold them against the desk between them.  Nino counted down, “Two, One, Go!” and they began to wrestle.

In fact, Adrien flicked his eyes up to Marinette’s face, surprised by her strength.  He would not win this competition as easily as he had won against Nino, but he knew he could indeed have won.  However, struggling back and forth, Adrien slowly allowed Marinette to push his hand down, down, down to the desk.

Nino slapped the desk and grabbed Marinette’s hand, holding it in the air and announcing, “Marinette wins!”

As everyone cheered, Adrien opened his eyes innocently and remarked, “Wow, Marinette, I guess you’re stronger than me!”

Marinette opened her mouth as if to say something, and then pressed it closed again, instead giving Adrien a weak smile. At that point the teacher walked in, and all attention was turned to class.  

Except… Marinette found herself staring out the window and silently cursing Cat Noir.

After the day’s classes were done, Marinette was at her locker wondering uncertainly if Adrien still remembered about the library.  Chloe had been pushy and self-important throughout the day, frequently mentioning how close Adrien’s father and her own were. Marinette could not imagine that after all, Adrien really wanted to study with her in the library, yet she didn’t want to completely give up hope... but she could not figure out how to mention it to Adrien without looking like a love-sick cow.  She sighed.

“Hey, Marinette,” Adrien’s voice whispered in her ear, “Are you still up for working on History together?”

Marinette turned quickly, giddiness overcoming her, and nodded.  She opened her mouth to speak but Adrien put his finger to his lips to shush her.  “Grab your stuff and follow me,” he whispered.

Marinette did as he asked, quietly closing her locker door and following Adrien’s lead.  When he got to the hallway, he first peeked right and left before stepping out. Marinette followed him in a direction away from the library.  They took a set of back stairs, traversed a couple of smaller hallways, and finally stopped in front of a closed door. Again checking left and right, Adrien opened the door and ushered Marinette inside.  She saw that his bookbag was already placed on the table that took up almost half of the small room. A window looked out onto the back street of the school, with a small park beyond. The room was sunny but intimate.

Adrien closed the door and leaned against it.  In his normal voice he apologized, “I hope this is okay?  We can go to the library if you want, but I think Chloe was planning to study there as well, and I - uh - I just thought it might be a little quieter in here.”  He smiled a little nervously, obviously waiting for her agreement.

“No, no, this is fine!” Marinette felt funny.  Her heart was racing, and her thoughts were scattered.  She had to lecture herself not to read too much into Adrien’s behavior, but a large part of her felt complimented and relieved.

Adrien walked over to his bookbag and started pulling out his work.  “This is where I have my Latin lessons, and sometimes my Chinese. I don’t think they use it much after school hours.”

“It’s really great,” Marinette offered, then thought she ought to pull out her books just like Adrien.  “I don’t need any of the books in the library, I think, so we can stay here as long as you want.” When Adrien glanced at her, amused, Marinette added, “To study…”

Adrien could almost feel the echo of his Cat Noir ears flicking as he teased her, “To study.”  A blush stained Marinette’s cheeks.

“So, what's your essay on?” Adrien asked, holding out the chair next to his for Marinette to sit.

“Umm, I'm writing about Napoleon’s march into Russia and the role the soldiers’ uniforms played in their defeat.”

Adrien nodded, impressed.  “That sounds interesting. I’m just writing about the Napoleonic Code.”

The two chatted back and forth about their subjects, and why they had chosen them.

“So ultimately it's your interest in fashion which led you to the French uniforms?” Adrien asked.

Talking about her favorite subject, Marinette’s eyes glowed, “Well, yes, but it’s really about the materials that go into fashion.  Well,” she giggled, “you should know, of anyone! But the materials can play an enormous role in the functionality of a design, like the tin buttons on the uniforms that crumbled in the cold.”  Marinette realized that she was blathering, and let herself peter out, “Well, anyway, that’s all.”

Adrien remarked with sincerity, “I’d like to read it when you’re done.”

“Um, sure…” Marinette answered, awkwardly.  She wasn’t sure she believed him. “Well, I guess we ought to work…”

“Right,” Adrien agreed.  They worked companionable for almost ten minutes, when Adrien broke the silence. 

“So what material do you think Ladybug and Cat Noir’s outfits are made of?”

Marinette’s head popped up, and searching Adrien’s face she said, “What?”

“You know,” he explained, “you’ve seen Cat Noir up close, and I’ve seen Ladybug a couple of times.  I’ve wondered about the material in their suits. Like, are they just superheroes anyway, or is it the suits that give them extra power, or what?  Haven’t you wondered that?”

Marinette was very careful how she answered, “Uh, I guess.  I didn’t really examine Cat Noir’s outfit…”

“I don’t know if I could ever do what they do,” Adrien said, innocently changing tack.  “They must be incredibly brave.”

“Um… yeah.”  Marinette agreed, but then added, “Or maybe they’re just normal people, like, like you or me, and then sometimes they can change.”

“C’mon,” scoffed Adrien, “you can’t really believe that!”  He snickered, and Marinette frowned down at her paper. “I mean, I can’t even stand up to my father most of the time.  Can you imagine me standing up to the bad guys they fight?” Adrien sniggered.

Marinette was silent.  She felt her heart constrict a little, and she remembered the words she had used with Cat Noir to describe Adrien, ‘He’s just a regular guy, okay?  He’s just a nice, smart, kind guy.’  Suddenly, Marinette felt a longing to be sitting next to Cat Noir.  For all of the deception between them, in many ways Marinette realized she could be more honest with Cat Noir about her true person, than with anyone else in the world.  She sighed.

Next to her, Adrien seemed to be diligently working on his essay.  However, inside he was panicking, wondering if by downplaying his civilian self in Marinette’s eyes he was really pushing her towards his Cat Noir side, or if he was just merely pushing her away.

After about twenty minutes of fast scribbling and desultory chatting between the two of them, Adrien checked his watch and knew he had to get going.  “My father has scheduled Chinese for me this afternoon, and then there's the Louvre tour.” He snorted as he pushed his books into his bag.

Closing her notebook, Marinette asked, “Is he really as demanding as all that?”

“You have no idea,” was all that Adrien would say.

“Well,” Marinette offered charitably, “at least you’ll have Chloe with you at the Louvre, so it won’t be all academic.”  She did not add that, knowing Chloe, it was likely to be the opposite of academic.

Adrien placed his hand under Marinette’s elbow and, like an old fashioned gentleman, helped her to rise.  “Yeah, well, Chloe is… Chloe. I wish  you could come to the Louvre with me instead, Marinette.  I know I would enjoy it much more.” He still had his hand under Marinette’s elbow.

Marinette’s heart flip flopped, and she smiled up into Adrien’s eyes.  He ran his hand along her arm until he held her hand between them, and looking down, he played gently with her fingers.  Little frissons of electricity zipped through Marinette, landing somewhere near her stomach.

“I really wish you could come with me,” he repeated.  They gazed at each other, and Marinette’s mouth went dry.

Adrien knew he shouldn’t.  He had put so much thought into how to get Marinette thinking of both sides of him as potential boyfriend material, and kissing Marinette right now was not part of the plan.  It might skew her against Cat Noir again. But he was still panicking a little, fearful that he had overplayed his hand, fearful that he might not get another chance to kiss his Ladybug.

Adrien’s gaze flicked down to Marinette’s soft, pink lips, and his resolve crumbled.  Raising his right hand, still holding Marinette’s hand with his left, Adrien used one finger to gently trace her jawline.  Coming to rest beneath her bottom lip, Adrien asked hesitantly, “Marinette, may I kiss you?” 

Marinette’s cheeks glowed an enchanting pink, and unable to speak, she merely nodded her head.

Slowly, tentatively, Adrien lowered his lips to hers.  Marinette’s eyes drifted closed, as Adrien’s hand snaked behind her neck to cradle the back of her head.  At first, Adrien’s kisses were like soft butterflies, but soon he deepened the kiss into something more than romantic.  

Letting go of Marinette’s hand, Adrien wrapped his arms around her waist to pull her entire body against his.  On their own volition, Marinette’s arms found their way up to his shoulders, and she then wove her fingers into his silky golden hair.  Slanting his head, Adrien deepened the kiss even more, and Marinette quickly lost herself in an explosion of emotions. Adrien poured all of the love, admiration, and tenderness he felt into his kiss, and Marinette’s natural shyness disappeared as she rose on her tiptoes, pushed her lithe body even more against his solid frame, and met him kiss for kiss.  As in everything else, they were equal partners.

Both were lost in a world of sensation, and both were jarred back to reality by the sudden ringing of Adrien's phone.

They pulled apart, not yet letting go of the other, still half drunk and panting for breath.  Green eyes drowned in blue, but finally Adrien said, “I have to go. That’s my driver calling.”  He did not make a move to let Marinette go.

Marinette lowered her gaze, her shyness returning, and slowly she pulled her hands down to his shoulders.  She couldn’t quite let go of him; her head was still spinning and she wasn’t sure she was capable of standing.

The phone went quiet for a moment, and then started ringing incessantly again.  

Finally letting go of Marinette’s waist, Adrien placed his hands over Marinette’s and pulled them from his shoulders.  They held hands between their bodies, and when Marinette looked back up into Adrien’s eyes, he could see that her lips were swollen and red from his kisses.

“Oh my God, Mari-” he said, but bit off the rest.  She was not ready to hear it; she would not believe it.

The phone started ringing again.  Finally letting her go, Adrien grabbed his bookbag and phone, and dropping a kiss on the tip of her nose, he said again, “I’ve got to go.”  Moving to the door, he gazed one more time back at Marinette. She was standing where he had left her, with two fingers pressed to her rosy lips.  “I’ll see you tomorrow,” Adrien promised, and then left.

Racing down the hall to the front of the school, Adrien almost tripped when Plagg zoomed out in front of him.  “So how was it, Loverboy?” Plagg teased.

“Shut up, Plagg,” Adrien said.  His head was still too full to manage anything more.

 


	4. The Garbageman

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An akuma attack brings Ladybug and Cat Noir closer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks go to my son for helping with this akuma attack scene. In fact, he came up with 85% of the final battle. I told him what I needed to happen, and he crafted most of the details - clever kid!! <3 <3 <3

Marinette wasn’t really sure how she got home that afternoon.  She was pretty sure she floated the whole way, and maybe on a rainbow, but the details were unclear.  She vaguely remembered greeting her parents, with stars in her eyes, but Marinette’s first coherent memory was flopping back on the chaise lounge in her room, Tikki buzzing about her head, and sighing, “Tikki, he kissed me!  We kissed!” Marinette hugged herself, giddy with excitement.

“Marinette, he’s so nice!” Tikki said, and giggled, “And he has good taste in girls!”

Marinette grabbed her phone and called Alya.  The phone rang four times, then went to voicemail.  “Alya, this is Marinette, I have news!” she squealed.  She laid back, and replayed the whole, romantic scene in her mind, gently touching her lips as she thought of their kiss.  She squealed again, giggled, and dialed Alya’s number again.

It wasn’t until later that evening that Alya finally called back.  By then Marinette was mostly walking on the ground again. She had already had dinner with her parents and had to put up with their sidelong glances and pointed questions.  And, no matter how wonderful her thoughts were, she had homework that she  had to complete, and big tests that she knew she should begin studying for.  Still, when Alya finally called, the two giggled like grade-school girls, their words tumbling over each other.

Finally, Alya sighed, “Oh, it’s  so romantic.  I just knew you two were perfect for each other!  Perfect!”

“Hee hee!  I know!” Marinette replied, smiling.

Soon after, Alya had to hang up to help get her younger siblings ready for bed.  Marinette sat alone in her bedroom, replaying again the events of the day. Tikki was curled up in a ball at at the foot of the chaise lounge, napping, and the room seemed particularly quiet.  Glancing at her wall, plastered with pictures of Adrien, Marinette’s gaze was caught by the red and black Ladybug ragdoll she had made. Propped against the wall, it sat side by side with the Cat Noir doll, separated a bit from the three villains she had also sewed.

Marinette approached the dolls, and gently fingered the mask on her Ladybug figure.  Alya had said, ‘You two are perfect for each other,’ and thinking about the kiss, Adrien did seem perfect.  But without invitation Cat Noir’s voice sounded in her mind, ‘Like  us, MiLady, like  us.’  Could she and Adrien be “perfect” if there was this big, huge secret between the two of them?  Almost against her wishes, memories of the multiple times Cat Noir had jumped in front of danger just to save her, drifted through her mind.  Would Adrien…?

Marinette pressed her fingers hard against her closed eyes.  “No!” she muttered to herself, “Adrien is everything I’ve ever wanted.”  Standing still for a moment, the words refused to sink into her brain, so that in a fit of pique Marinette took up the Cat Noir doll, and plopped it forcefully down backwards, facing the wall.  For good measure, she moved the Ladybug doll to sit with the Villains. Returning to her desk, she packed her schoolbooks back into her bag, before getting ready for bed.

Across the room, Tikki roused and asked, “Marinette, are you okay?”

“Sure Tikki, of course, I’m fine.”

“You don’t seem fine,” Tikki said, flying up to Marinette’s face.  “I thought everything was wonderful?”

“It is wonderful,” Marinette assured Tikki.  Snapping the book bag closed with a little more force than necessary, Marinette repeated, “It  is  wonderful.”

 

Across town, Adrien was pacing back and forth in front of his huge wall of windows.  Three times he had almost changed into Cat Noir, thinking that maybe he could come up with some excuse to visit Marinette, or to call Ladybug.  But each time, he stopped himself. He was torn apart, wanting as Adrien to kiss Marinette again, and wanting as Cat Noir to win her over to his Cat Noir side.  He rubbed his temples, as if that would relieve the painful confusion.

Plagg was perched at Adrien’s desk, almost cuddling his cheese.  “What’s the big deal?” he asked again. “You want to kiss her, she wants to kiss you, so kiss.  Who cares what you look like?”

“I care, Plagg,” Adrien responded, as he had the three times previously that Plagg had asked.  Adrien’s frustration grew with each response. He could barely explain it to himself, so how could he explain it to Plagg?  “I’m just as much Cat Noir, maybe more, but she doesn’t see me as Cat Noir, she doesn’t want to date, or kiss, Cat Noir. She wants Adrien.”

“But you  are Adrien!”

“But I’m also Cat Noir!”

“Ugh!” Plagg exclaimed, impatient.  “This is too much for me! Why can’t humans just eat cheese and be happy?”  He shoved a large wedge of brie into his small mouth.

Groaning, Adrien flopped backwards onto his bed.  “I’m going to bed now, Plagg.”

His mouth still full of cheese, Plagg barely managed to enunciate, “G’night.”

 

The early dawn was barely painting the rooftops of Paris when an alert woke Adrien.  Using a police scanner, he had rigged an alarm to warn him when police were suddenly lighting up the communications channels.  He figured this generally indicated an akuma attack, and only once since installing it had the warning been a false alarm.

Adrien rolled out of bed and reached for his television remote.  As soon as the news channel came on, Adrien saw pictures of a large, brown, monstrous human, in a bright green Paris Sanitation Department uniform, with a cloud of little black flies swarming around him.  In his right hand he held the lid of an old-fashioned metal garbage can, and in his left hand was the garbage can itself. Roaring incoherently, the giant figure would periodically close the lid over the garbage can, then quickly remove it.  In whatever direction he aimed the lid, a glistening bomb of garbage would shoot forcefully from the can.

“He appeared at 5:30 this morning,” the news anchor was reporting, “and has already spread garbage throughout the Latin Quarter.  Now, The Garbageman, as he calls himself, is headed in the direction of the Louvre-”

“Plagg,” Adrien jumped up, “Claws Out!”

Plagg was pulled from his peaceful sleep, exclaiming, “Heyyy…” as he swirled into Adrien’s ring.  Power rippled through his body lightening fast, and when Adrien felt the ground beneath his feet again, he was Cat Noir.  Extending his claws, he stretched his arms like he was raking his opponent.

Cat Noir leapt up to his open window, and vaulted out into the morning duskiness.  Cool air zoomed past his ears as he flew through the night. Within moments he arrived at the Louvre.  The headlights of a multitude of police cars lit up the scene.

Ladybug was standing between the monster and the grand glass pyramid of the Louvre.  The glass was already covered with slimy garbage, slowly gooping down the sides to pool in the metal window frames and at the base of the pyramid.  Ladybug’s whirring yoyo created a bright circle of red light, but she couldn’t stop The Garbageman from bombing the museum. Each time she tried to catch the garbage can with her yoyo, her yoyo was met with a new blast of garbage.  “Now you will see garbage!” The Garbageman periodically roared.

Cat Noir leapt down to Ladybug’s side, “I smelled something ‘off’ on this side of town, and couldn’t _refuse_ to help,” he punned in greeting.

Ladybug flashed him a smile, “Where’ve you been?  Hanging out in the alley, Cat?”

Cat Noir jumped in front of Ladybug, spinning and extending his baton to block a particularly large gob of garbage from hitting them.  “Be still my heart!” he exclaimed, smiling hugely, “Has MiLady made a pun?”

Ladybug laughed lightly, then all business said, “Follow me!”  She did a series of backflips over continuous blasts of garbage.  Behind her, she could hear the police officers howling in disgust.  She shot out her yoyo and launched herself across the yard and up to the roofline.  Landing lightly on her feet, she took cover behind a chimney.

Within a moment Cat Noir was huddled by her side, and they could hear the roar of The Garbageman and his lumbering footsteps.  He seemed to be leaving the Palais du Louvre.

“What does this guy want?” Cat Noir asked.

“I guess he wants people to show more respect to our city garbage collectors?” Ladybug replied.

“Well  I never talk trash about them!” Cat Noir waggled his eyebrows.

“Cat, be serious!”  Ladybug peeked out from behind the chimney, then seeing the coast was clear, stood up, arms akimbo.  She surveyed the damage The Garbageman had done. “We need to get him out of the city. Everyone will be going to work soon, and if there’s garbage everywhere, the city will be at a standstill.”

“The city dump is the place for him,” Cat Noir said, half serious.

Ladybug turned quickly to him, “You’re right!  We can lead him there! But where is it?”

“Uh…” Cat Noir flipped open his baton and did a gps search for the closest dump.  “There are several, but the closest is on the south side.  It’s really for scrap metal, but it’ll do.”

“We can take turns leading him on,” Ladybug directed.

Cat Noir couldn’t resist, and with his sly grin said, “You can always lead me on, LB!”

With a snort, Ladybug glanced at him, raised one eyebrow, and replied, “I thought you promised not to tease, Cat Noir.”  Throwing out her yoyo, she took off in the direction of the Seine.

“I promised to  try, MiLady!” Cat Noir shouted after her, as he too vaulted through the streets.  As he passed her, he called out, “Just to  try!”

The two converged on the smelly fiend at the same time.  He was standing on a bridge, emptying a constant flow of garbage into the river.

“Hey, Garbageman!” Ladybug called, shooting her yoyo at him.  She managed to wrap it around his right arm, the side with the lid, but when she yanked, the monstrous figure yanked back and sent her flying.  Ladybug tumbled through the air, and landed with a thump against the retaining wall next to the Seine.

Cat Noir leaped in front of The Garbageman and called out, “Hey, Stinky, haven’t you heard it’s against the law to litter?”

The Garbageman tried to pelt him with garbage bombs, but rapidly twirling his baton, Cat Noir hopped backwards down the street.  “You may smell bad, “ Cat Noir taunted, “But you sure are slow! No wonder all that garbage has piled up!” With a terrible roar, the villain lumbered clumsily down the street, chasing Cat Noir and no longer throwing garbage bombs.

Ladybug tag-teamed with Cat Noir, baiting The Garbageman with taunts and insults, leading him relentlessly south out of the city.

“This way, Ladybug!” Cat Noir called.  The houses and apartment buildings here had lost their Parisian charm, and looked rundown and dingy.  Towards the end of a shabby street Ladybug could see what looked like a large dump. Garbage, metal, and beat up cars were piled in a mishmash across at least an acre of land.  Several large platform towers dotted the yard, and from one structure hung a huge metal disc. “Looks like we’ve reached your home, Stinky!” Cat Noir called. The Garbageman followed him into the dump, and started shooting his garbage bombs as soon as he saw Cat Noir pause.  

In his grinding voice he yelled, “Give me your Miraculouses!”

Ignoring the smelly giant, Cat Noir shouted to Ladybug, “Now what?”

“Lead him over to that magnet!” She pointed to the huge industrial electromagnet, hanging from a thick, dirty chain.  Smashed cubes of metal lay scattered beneath it.

Cat Noir hopscotched through the dump, enticing The Garbageman forward.  Ladybug dashed behind the hulking villain. Scanning the structure from which the pendulous magnet hung, Ladybug spied the bright red emergency safety switch, beneath a plastic cover, to turn the electromagnet on and off.  Throwing out her yoyo, Ladybug smashed the plastic cover. “Get ready,” she yelled to Cat Noir as soon as the villain was close to the magnet. Then, throwing again, her yoyo slapped hard against the switch and turned the electromagnet on.

Various cubes of smashed metal shifted and vibrated, and one large bundle directly beneath the magnet flew up into the air to attach itself firmly to the large iron disc.  As it rose, it smashed past Cat Noir, knocking him to the ground and knocking his baton out of his hands.

Ladybug jumped past The Garbageman to shield Cat Noir, while garbage bombs exploded around them.  “Why isn’t it working?” she shouted, confused. “I thought the magnet would take his garbage can!”

“It’s not ferrous!” Cat Noir yelled, “It’s probably tin.”  He flip-flopped past flying globs of garbage to get to his baton.  The Garbageman backed away from the magnet, still shooting. He started to shoot wildly at Ladybug, Cat Noir, and the magnet itself, forcefully enough that the large magnet started to swing like an enormous, two-ton pendulum.  

And then… One shot smashed against the emergency switch, and turned the electromagnet off.  As if in slow motion, Cat Noir could see exactly what was about to occur. The large metal bundle dropped, directly over the figure of Ladybug.  The Garbageman continued to shoot bombs at Ladybug, and she had no idea what was about to hit her.

“Ladybug!” Cat Noir screamed, then instinctively called, “Cataclysm!”  Power surged through him, focusing in his right hand, as Cat Noir leapt through the air.  He raked his hand against the heavy falling cube, demolishing it into a fine dusty rust, and knocked into Ladybug, pushing her out of danger.

Other, smaller bits of metal that had also been captured by the magnet rained down on Cat Noir as Ladybug tumbled out of the way.

Cat Noir extended his baton to vault over to Ladybug, but as he launched himself into the air, the massive magnetic disc swung inexorably back, and with terrible, perfect timing, its entire two tons smashed into Cat Noir’s leg with an awful “crack!”

Cat Noir screamed as sharp pain tore through his leg.  His calf was suddenly on fire, and the pain ricocheted throughout his body.  He tumbled to the ground encased in a fog of agony.

“Cat!” Ladybug screamed, all thought of The Garbageman momentarily erased from her mind. She pelted over to Cat Noir, moaning on the ground and gripping his left leg, while continuous blasts of garbage surrounded them.

“Lucky Charm!” Ladybug threw her yoyo into the sky, desperate for a means to end the battle.  With a blast of red light, a large U-shaped magnet, over half the size of Ladybug herself, fell hard from the sky and landed at her feet.

“What the-?” Ladybug cried, frustrated.  Shielding herself and Cat Noir with her yoyo, Ladybug’s eyes darted frantically across the garbage dump.  Why another magnet, and how could she use it?

The electromagnetic disc was still swinging from its chain, and Ladybug noted that one of the large platforms, with an iron ladder leading up to it, was fairly close to the disc.  An idea exploded in her mind, and she whispered anxiously to herself, “This had better work!”

Leaving the U-shaped magnet where it was, Ladybug used her yoyo to swing up to the platform.  She taunted The Garbageman while she swung, “Hey, Stinky, I’m over here! Don’t you want my Miraculous?”  The Garbageman turned and started lumbering towards her. “Oh look,” she cried falsely, “I’m stuck on this platform.  Are you gonna come get my earrings?” She pulled the dark wisps of hair away from her ears, and flashed her Ladybug earrings at him.

The Garbageman let out a roar and, enticed beyond logic, he dropped his garbage can and, using his one free hand, began to climb the ladder up to where Ladybug stood, still teasing him.  

 _The akuma must be in the lid_ , Ladybug thought.  Ladybug waited until the villain was only a hand's breadth from reaching her, and then she leaped down from the platform.  Landing on the ground with a roll, Ladybug tugged the heavy lucky charm magnet to her while shooting out her yoyo to the emergency switch.

As the electromagnet turned on, Ladybug pulled her magnet out of the influence of the large disc.  She leapt to the side opposite from the magnetic disc and tower that The Garbageman was still clinging to.  Holding up the magnet, Ladybug used its polarity to repel the huge electromagnet away from her and towards the iron ladder where The Garbageman was perched.  

Ladybug shifted carefully, holding the wobbly electromagnet as stationary as she could, as if by magic angled diagonally on its chain.  With moaning and creaking, the ladder slowly began to pull away from its moorings. Ripping relentlessly from its frame, the ladder began to fall, with The Garbageman still on it.  The villain panicked, dropping the garbage lid and grabbing on to the shifting structure with both hands.

Dropping her magnet, Ladybug shot out her yoyo and grabbed the lid, pulling it to her.  As The Garbageman yelled in dismay, Ladybug stomped on the lid and cracked it. A little black butterfly appeared, flitting away.  Spinning her yoyo, Ladybug cried, “No more evildoing for you, little akuma!” She flung out her yoyo, and captured the velvety black butterfly.  Pulling it back to her, Ladybug opened her yoyo and a sweet white butterfly sat there. It tested its wings, then took off in flight. “Bye bye, little butterfly,” Ladybug smiled.

Hauling the lucky charm magnet back into her arms, Ladybug did her best to throw it into the sky, calling, “Miraculous Ladybug!”

Immediately the magnet exploded in bright red and pink ladybug starlights, and swirls of light swept over the garbage dump, through the suburb’s streets, and throughout Paris, returning everything to normal.  On his hands and knees, The Garbageman’s monstrous image fizzled away, to leave a confused Parisian Sanitation Worker in its place. Shaking his head, he asked, “What am I doing here?”

Ladybug ran to Cat Noir, who lay curled on the ground, absolutely still.  For one horrifying moment, Ladybug thought the very worst had happened. Pain ripped through her mind, and she yelled desperately, “Cat Noir!”  At her voice, Cat Noir’s eyes flickered open. His face was blanched, and she saw now that he was grinding his teeth trying to deal with the pain.  He was gripping his leg, and dropping to her knees, Ladybug cried, “Oh, Cat,” and pulled his head into her lap. Tears welled up in her eyes.

“Hey, Bugaboo,” Cat Noir tried to tease through clenched teeth, “Now will you admit you love me?”  Cat Noir’s attempt at a grin ended in a grimace.

“C’mon,” she ignored him, “We’ve got to get you help!”  Lifting him effortlessly in her arms, Ladybug ignored the akuma’s victim behind her and dashed out of the yard.  Holding Cat Noir as carefully as she could with one hand, Ladybug tried to swing rapidly through the suburban streets to get them close to home.

Each jarring landing caused Cat Noir to moan involuntarily.  *Bleep - bleep - bleep* Cat Noir’s ring was losing his last paw pad, and Ladybug’s earrings only had two spots left.  The pain pulsed from his leg and fogged his mind, making coherent thought almost impossible. Instinct alone urged him to shield his transformation from Ladybug; they were close enough to see the treetops of the Parc Montsouris, and Cat Noir took Ladybug’s face in his hands and said, “Ladybug, you have to leave me.  I’m about to change.”

“No!” she cried.  “You’re hurt! I have to get you to help!”

“Bugaboo, I can  feel my leg healing already.  It’s okay. You must leave me!  I’ll be okay.” The last paw pad began to fade from his ring.

Tears blurred Ladybug’s vision.  She stood at a corner, gripping Cat Noir in her arms.  Pulling her face close to his, Cat Noir placed a soft kiss on the tip of her nose and said, “Go!  Go!”

With stricken eyes, Ladybug placed Cat Noir gently against a building, a small bush providing some privacy.  Conflicted, with tears streaming down her cheeks, Ladybug took one last look at Cat Noir. “Go!” he demanded.  As she shot her yoyo to a rooftop down the street, and sped away, Cat Noir felt the cool wash of power zip over his body, transforming him.

Immediately the pain in his leg intensified.  Adrien gasped in shallow breaths, trying to gain control of the pain.  Plagg hovered in front of Adrien’s narrowed eyes, his voice for once serious, “You need help.”

Blowing his breath out, Adrien said, “I can  feel it healing, Plagg.”

“I know.  But you need help.  Stay right here.  I’ll be back.”

The longest twenty minutes of Adrien’s life passed while Plagg was gone.  Adrien huddled against the wall, gripping his leg.  Odd sensations seemed to ripple through his very bones, while lightening bolts of pain periodically took his breath away.  Then, two small feet stepped in front of him, and Adrien raised his eyes to find a diminutive Chinese man standing before him.  In a kind voice, the man stated, “You need help.”  Plagg, and another green kwami, flitted around the man’s head.

Adrien laid his head against the building at his back, and closed his eyes against the pain.  “Yes,” he said, “I do.”  Relief at his rescue poured through him.


	5. Loving the Whole Boy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Worries over Cat Noir, seriously injured in their most recent akuma attack, are strong enough even to push out thoughts of Adrien from Marinette's mind. What does this mean?

As usual, Marinette was late to class. She slipped as quietly into her seat as she could while Mme Bustier lectured about literature.  Her pulse was still racing after the morning’s adventures.  Despite the exams looming ahead, Marinette’s concentration eluded her.  Again and again her mind replayed the final fight in the metal yard, Cat Noir’s scream when the pendulous magnet shattered his bone, his drawn, pale face imploring her to leave before he transformed.  Marinette’s heart hurt when she imagined her Chaton, trapped where she had left him, unable to move with his broken leg.  She was so focused on Cat Noir that a good five minutes passed before she noticed that Adrien was missing.

At the first pause in Mme Bustier’s lecture, Alya leaned over and whispered, “Where is he?”  She nodded with her chin towards Adrien’s empty seat.  Shaking her head, Marinette shrugged her ignorance.  Alya glanced over at Chloe, who smirked back, as if she knew something.

During the long morning, Marinette struggled to pull her thoughts back into the classroom.  Constantly her mind wandered to Cat Noir, and she felt helpless wondering where he was and if anyone was helping him.  Marinette chewed nervously on her pencil, with a constant frown on her face, until finally Alya murmured, “Don’t worry, I’m sure he’s okay.”

“What?” Marinette’s head shot up.

“He’s probably just sick.  Which means you’ll be sick soon too, girl!”  Alya smirked conspiratorially.

It took a moment for Marinette to realize that Alya was talking about Adrien, and then Marinette felt guilty for not sparing any of her concern or worry for him.

“He seemed okay when he left yesterday…” Marinette replied, then blushed a little, and then she and Alya giggled, which earned them a severe look from Mme Bustier.

While switching classes to Physics, Nino approached them holding his phone, “Yo, I texted Adrien and he says he’s sick.  His dad made him stay home today, dude.”

Chloe sailed past, her nose in the air and Sabrina in her wake.  “I could have told you that,” she said snottily. “Poor Adrikins and I got home sooo late,” she glanced at Marinette, “I’m sure he was just too worn out for school.”  She smirked as she walked away, while Marinette and Alya looked poison darts at her back.

Lowering his voice, Nino repeated for the girls, “He actually says he’s sick, dude, not just tired.”

“I’m sick and tired of that girl!” Alya said.

Marinette, however, replied to Nino, “Tell him we hope he feels better.”

“Okay!” Nino said.  Half teasing, he read as he typed, “Marinette says to tell you that-”

“No!” Marinette interrupted, “Don’t say that!”  Then she rethought her first reaction. “Actually,” she started, and looked over at Alya.

Alya gave her an encouraging grin and the thumbs up sign, and said, “You go girl!”

“Actually Nino, go ahead and write that!”  Marinette smiled, proud of her courage.

“Marinette says to tell you that we all hope you feel better.”  Nino pressed ‘send’ and Marinette’s heart did a little flip flop.  They hadn’t even gotten to Physics class when Nino’s phone chimed.  Reading his text, Nino grinned at Marinette and repeated, “He says to tell you thanks.”

All three walked into class smiling.

 

By the time lunch rolled around, Marinette was chomping at the bit.  As soon as they were released, she turned to Alya and excused herself, “I have to get some things from home.  I’ll see you after lunch.”

“Sure thing, girl,” Alya replied agreeably.  Scooping up her books, she dashed after Nino.

Marinette skipped down the stairs of the school, and turned as if to go home.  However, reaching the corner, she stepped into a narrow alley and opened her purse.  Tikki flew out. “Come on, Tikki,” Marinette said, “Let’s check on Cat Noir. Spots on!”   The air rippled around her, and after a second of dizzying disorientation, Ladybug was standing on the street.  Immediately she shot out her yoyo to race to the south side of the city where she had left Cat Noir.

Ladybug criss-crossed multiple streets, even though she was ninety five percent certain she has found the right one on her first attempt.  Nowhere did she find Cat Noir, nor even any trace of him.   Still edged with worry, Ladybug made her way back to the school.  She would simply have to trust that Cat Noir had gotten the help he needed, but she wasn’t happy about it.  Once again in the narrow alley by her school, Ladybug transformed back into Marinette.

“Don’t worry, Marinette,” Tikki said in her sweet voice, “I’m sure he’s alright!  His leg was already beginning to heal.”

“Does it really work like that?”  Marinette couldn’t hide her anxiety. 

“Your powers are very complex,” Tikki answered, “but since superheroes are always facing danger, healing is definitely part of the magic.”

“Do you think he’ll be on patrol tonight?” Marinette asked hopefully, “Could it really heal that fast?”

“Well…” Tikki replied cagily, “It depends on if he got the right help.”

“What does that mean, Tikki?” Marinette asked, confused.

In the distance a school bell rang.  “I’ll tell you later, Marinette. Now you have to get back to school.”

Nodding her head, Marinette dashed back into the building.

In terms of living a double life, it was one of the hardest days Marinette had experienced.  Her worry about Cat Noir, and impatience to see him that evening, was overwhelming. It made Alya laugh, convinced that Marinette was beside herself with worry for Adrien.  This made Marinette feel worse, because although she hoped Adrien felt better, and was a little disappointed not to see him, in fact very little of her thoughts were spent on him.  Cat Noir was foremost and predominantly in her mind. 

By the time she got home, Marinette’s anxiety had blossomed.  Although she tried to school her thoughts, she kept imagining the worst.  As soon as she reached the privacy of her room, Marinette said, “I’m going to change, Tikki.  I’m going to try to reach him on his baton!”  Tikki nodded in agreement as Marinette called out, “Spots on!”  But, when Ladybug pulled out her yoyo to call, there was no connection.  Every time she tried, there was no answer.  Finally, Ladybug re-transformed, wringing her hands and fighting despondency. 

As she paced up  and down in her room, Tikki gently lectured her, “You have to calm down, Marinette.  I’m sure there’s nothing wrong. And if there is, Cat Noir needs you to stay clear headed.”   Marinette knew that everything Tikki said was true, but it didn’t really help.  If she closed her eyes, she could transport herself immediately back to the moment when there was the terrible crunch of breaking bone, and Cat Noir’s anguished yell.

Sighing deeply, Marinette said, “I should never have left him.  I should have ignored him and stayed by his side.”  Tears pricked her eyes again.

“No, Marinette, he wanted you to leave,” Tikki tried to reassure her.

But Marinette was too deep into her thoughts to heed Tikki.  Instead she climbed up onto her bed, laid on her stomach, and cried out her worries and guilt.

When Marinette went down for dinner, her parents immediately noticed her red, puffy eyes and somber expression.  “Do you feel ill, dear?” her mom asked, placing the back of her hand on Marinette’s forehead.

“No, Mom, I’m fine.  I’m just… It’s just school,” she prevaricated.  “I’m just stressed.”

Her father placed his strong hand gently on her shoulder, “Don’t worry, Marinette, you’ll do fine.  We believe in you!”

As he squeezed her shoulder, Marinette reached up and gripped his hand, squeezing back.  She turned her head to smile at her dad, “Thanks Papa,” she said.

“Maybe you should get to bed early tonight, honey,” her mom offered.  “It’s almost the weekend, and you can catch up on any homework then.”

“Thanks Mom.  Okay,” she agreed.

Climbing the stairs to her room after dinner, Marinette checked the clock for the hundredth time.  She climbed up onto her bed loft, and arranged her pillow to look like her body cuddled beneath the blankets.  Over an hour early for their appointed rendez-vous, Marinette looked at Tikki and said “I can’t wait any longer.”

“I know, Marinette,” Tikki replied.

“Tikki, spots on!” Marinette called.  A bright light exploded in the room, and Marinette felt weightless and dizzy for a moment, before the floor re-formed under her.  Scrambling out onto the roof deck, Ladybug launched herself into the inky darkness.

She made her way directly to the Eiffel Tower, and climbed to the level where they had met before.  Quickly walking around the deck, Ladybug knew she was alone.  She opened her yoyo to see if she could call Cat Noir’s baton, but again there was no connection.  With worry engulfing her, Ladybug sank down to the metal grillework, dropped her forehead to her knees, and waited.

What if…  her mind played with her, heightening her worry.  What if… and What if… pounded into her imagination, until finally a light ‘thud’ sounded in front of her and Cat Noir’s beloved voice said, “Good evening, MiLady.”

Raising her head from her knees, there was no way Ladybug could hide the ravages of her tears from Cat Noir, even if she had thought to.  Cat Noir’s eyes went wide, and immediately he crouched down to his Ladybug and said “What’s wrong, Bugaboo?”

Ladybug launched herself at Cat Noir, knocking him over and sprawling on top of him, hugging him fiercely and hiding her face in his shoulder.  “I’m sorry! I’m so sorry! I shouldn’t have left you! I’m so sorry!” she cried.

Hesitantly, Cat Noir wrapped his arms around Ladybug and hugged her back.  “Shh, shh…” he soothed, “It’s okay! I’m almost all better! I’m fine!”

“No, it’s not!”  Ladybug’s muffled voice sounded against his shoulder.  Finally, she spoke the words that had been haunting her all day, “You could have died.”  She started sobbing even harder.

Cat Noir continued hugging Ladybug, while trying unsuccessfully to leverage them both into a sitting position.  He gave up and just lay there stroking her back, murmuring reassurances, “I’m okay, Bugaboo. It’s okay. Don’t cry,” he pleaded.  Her sobs were breaking his heart. “I promise never to try to save you again,” he tried to joke.

Ladybug raised her head and stared at Cat Noir intently.  Her wide, blue eyes glistened in the moonlight. Then, surprising both him and herself, she placed her hands on either side of his face and started kissing him passionately.  There was no introduction to the kiss, no working its way up - Ladybug immediately and enthusiastically kissed him deeply, intensely, with abandon. For a moment Cat Noir lay there shocked, but within seconds he was holding her more tightly, weaving his fingers into her silky hair, and meeting each of her kisses with his own.  In a world devoid of time, Ladybug poured all of her fears and worries, and Cat Noir poured all of his love and affection, into their kisses.

Running his hands down her shoulders and then her sides, to span her narrow waist, Cat Noir finally broke the kiss with Ladybug.  Breathless, he panted, “MiLady, we have to stop.”

Ladybug hid her face against Cat Noir’s neck.  He could feel her nodding, which amused him, and he hugged her reassuringly again.  This time, when he tried to pull them both up to a sitting position, she let him. He ended with his back against the frame of the tower, and Ladybug sitting across his lap, his arms around her and her face still buried against his neck.

Surprisingly, Ladybug started crying again.  “Oh God,” Cat Noir could barely hear her say, and then she pulled back and cried, “What have I done?”

Cat Noir flashed his mischievous smile and joked suggestively, “Nothing you shouldn’t have!”

“No, no!” Ladybug was seriously upset again, but this time with herself.  She looked panicky, “I shouldn’t have! I’m not supposed to like you! I like - Oh God, what did I do?”

Cat Noir threw his head back and laughed, which did not help the situation.  With his arms still around her, Ladybug reared back and started pummeling Cat Noir on the chest.  “Stop it! Stop it! Oh my God!” she cried.

Trying to control his laughter, Cat Noir said, “Ladybug, I can make it all better.”

“No,” she replied, panic and confusion lacing her voice, “You can’t!”

“Mari, I can,” Cat Noir said.  Ladybug did not catch the endearment.  “Let me!” he said.

Still holding Ladybug wrapped gently in a hug, Cat Noir called, “Claws in.”

Ladybug’s eyes got round, and she exclaimed, “No!” but it was too late.  Both were engulfed in a bright light, and beneath her hands Ladybug felt Cat Noir’s catsuit morph into something softer and loose.  Ladybug shut her eyes tightly, not wanting to look.

Cat Noir’s affectionate voice pleaded softly, “MiLady, open your eyes.”  He dropped a delicate kiss on the tip of her nose.

Ladybug worked her way up to it.  Squinting open only one eye, Ladybug hesitantly peeked at the boy in front of her.  Suddenly she opened both eyes wide, and gasped. Her face went white.

Adrien watched Ladybug carefully, uncertain how she would react.  At her silence, he laughed a nervous little chuckle and said, “Ta da!”  He grinned hopefully at her.

“You - I - you -” Ladybug could not string a coherent thought together, let alone a sentence.

“Bugaboo,” Adrien confessed tenderly, “I know it’s you, Marinette.”

If Ladybug’s eyes could have gotten any larger, they did.

“How - What -”

Adrien was just smiling at her, when Ladybug erupted and started pounding on his chest again.  Especially out of his Cat Noir suit, her fists rather hurt, and so Adrien pulled her more tightly into his arms and laughing a little said, “Ow, Ladybug!  Marinette!  It hurts!  Stop!  Please!”

“Were you toying with me?”  Ladybug suddenly, very clearly, accused.

“No!” Adrien replied, trying hard to keep the laughter out of his voice.  At Ladybug’s glare, he relented, “Well, maybe a little bit…” Ladybug started pummeling him again, so again he pulled her tightly against him.  “But only because I didn’t know what to do!”  That got Ladybug’s attention, and for a moment she stopped squirming.

“It was only a few days ago, after the Fish Lord attacked, and by mistake I came upon you just as you changed.  It wasn’t my fault!” he added, for good measure.

“You made me fall in love with you!” Ladybug accused.

Loosening his grasp, and pulling back to peer into her face, Adrien asked plaintively, “You didn’t love me at least a little bit before?”

Ladybug opened her mouth as if to speak, then closed it, then blushed.

“I just wanted you to love all sides of me, not just-” he waved one of his hands along his figure, “this side of me.”  He returned to holding her gently.

Ladybug stared at him for almost a full minute, her mind whirring.  Then, she buried her face against Adrien’s shoulder. Adrien leaned back, thinking that having his Bugaboo in his arms, burrowing against his shoulder, was possibly the best feeling in the world.

“I do,” came her soft voice.

“What?” Adrien asked, lowering his head to try to gaze into Ladybug’s eyes.

“I do love both sides of you,” she whispered.  Then, leaning back to stare him full in the face, Ladybug said more clearly, “I love all sides of you.”

Time stood still as the two smiled into each other’s eyes, emerald green and blue bell.  Slowly, reverently, Adrien lowered his mouth to kiss Ladybug.  At first gently, like the small waves on a calm ocean washing up on a soft beach, and then building to a tidal wave of love, the two became lost in their kiss.

They might have been lost, together, forever, but for the sudden eruption of sirens on some distant street in Paris.  It was Ladybug who broke it off, sighing the word, “Akuma.”  They leaned their foreheads together, the rising tide of sirens dousing the wonder that wrapped them together.  Ladybug pulled back, and the happiness that radiated from her smile warmed them both.  Mimicking Cat Noir’s sly smile, she dropped a kiss on Adrien’s nose just as he had done to her.  “C’mon, Cat,” she said, resolutely forcing a professional tone over the husky timbre of her voice.

“Mmmm…  I was wrong before,” Adrien murmured, ignoring the sirens.  “This is the best feeling ever.”  Gazing at his beloved, Adrien sighed.

In a teasing echo of former times, Ladybug pushed her finger against Adrien’s nose and repeated, “C’mon Cat.”  She grinned, “I think there’s an akuma that’s looking for us. Time to change and get to work!”

All this time, Plagg had been hiding behind Adrien’s back, agog to see how things played out.  Now it was clear that it would end not in cheese, but in fact in work, and he sullenly cried, “Awww…!”  

Chuckling, Adrien punched out his fist and cried, “Plagg, claws out!”  Still complaining, Plagg swirled into Adrien’s silver ring.

In a bright wash of light, Adrien transformed and Ladybug found herself clutched in the arms of Cat Noir.  “Phew!” she said, “That’s gonna take some getting used to!”

Pushing himself up, Cat Noir pulled Ladybug up with him, and once more wrapped his arms around her in a joyful hug.  “MiLady, I love you so much!” 

“Chaton,” Ladybug replied, a shadow of shyness still lacing her words, “I love you too.”

Then, at exactly the same moment, in exactly the same exuberant tone, they both shouted, “Let’s get ‘em!” and leaped off together into the night.

  
  


  The End 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you liked my story :-) As always, I want to thank everyone who has given me kudos on this, and bookmarked my story. It is a huge confidence boost, as I struggle to define myself as a writer, to know that there is an audience out there who appreciates my written words. To think that I might have touched some of you, brought you happiness in even some measure, seems truly magical to me. Thank you! 
> 
> I have one more MLB reveal story already written, and I will post it soon. Plus an Ouran High School Host Club story, if anyone is interested in that manga/anime (btw, an excellent(!) manga/anime - if you have an irreverent sense of humor at all, you should totally try it!).
> 
> As always, if you liked my story and are feeling particularly generous , please feel free to buy me a ko-fi :-) So I can show my husband that I *can* make money at writing (hahaha!) and also because then I get to boast that I am in fact not merely "a writer," but in fact "an author" - I mean, isn't that the difference? That people "pay" authors for their work? :-D And on this note, I know that some writers of fanfiction also offer to write stories on commission, and I think it would be really neat to do that! If you have any interest in commissioning a story from me, please message me; um, I don't know how to do that on AO3 (I am still fairly new to this site), but if you do tumblr, you can find me at simplejjs.
> 
> Oh, here's the ko-fi link (just in case!) [Buy Me a Coffee](https://ko-fi.com/Q5Q48GW7)  
> See you at my next story! Have a happy day! <3 <3 <3


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